Collect My Auris Hybrid - Got Offered A Maintenance Plan

[ashpole]

Yesterday I picked up my Aurus Hybrid T-Spirit and I'm loving it! After many new cars from Toyota I got offered a service maintenance plan - never been offered one before. It seems like a good deal but they do say - if it looks too good to be true.....

I was offered three and five year plans, I'm only quoting the five year plan as I intend to keep the HSD for at least five years and my annual mileage will be around 8000 to 9000 per year. (Let me know if you want the three year plan figures).

Total Cost: £823.99 over 60 months: £52.01 first month and then £13.31 per month for the balance.

Includes 5 services: Years 1, 3 and 5: intermediates; Years 2 and 4: Majors. Year 2 includes brake fluid change; Year 4 includes brake fluid change plus spark plugs, pollen filter and air filter. All services include oil and filter.

Is this a good deal worth taking or not? Are there any hidden catches?!?

[Jan&tone]

I had a 3 year plan with my Gen2 Prius, and just done the same with my Gen3... I think it's worth it - you don't have to find a lumpsum when the service is due which has got to be a result in my book!

[Parts-King]

There are no catches, and it's interest free! You don't have to find a lump sum at service time

Q: Why are they offered?

A: Because for too many years, customers would go elsewhere to have their cars serviced after the warranty period expired. The manufacturers have to look at ways at keeping customers and dealers together, and service plans bond you to your dealer for the duration. It is not a trick or a con, but a way of trying to lock the two together. The dealer keeps a customer in his workshop for the duration of the plan and the customer gets dealer servicing and FSH stamps, enhancing the value of your car when it comes to part exchange

Kingo

[ashpole]

There are no catches, and it's interest free! You don't have to find a lump sum at service time

Q: Why are they offered?

A: Because for too many years, customers would go elsewhere to have their cars serviced after the warranty period expired. The manufacturers have to look at ways at keeping customers and dealers together, and service plans bond you to your dealer for the duration. It is not a trick or a con, but a way of trying to lock the two together. The dealer keeps a customer in his workshop for the duration of the plan and the customer gets dealer servicing and FSH stamps, enhancing the value of your car when it comes to part exchange

Kingo

Thanks Kingo, that's very useful. Unusual for my dealer, the chap trying to sell the plan to me was from the old school of hard selling to ignorant customers stable and it made me just a bit suspicious - we also had a fruitless chat about GAP insurance! Certainly the overall cost is lower than the the sum of the individual services I had previously obtained from their service department so money-wise it's very good.

[Gav 18]

I took out a 4 services service plan for my Auris HSD. (I had a 3 services service plan with my old Auris). Good from the point of view, as others have mentioned, it spreads the cost and there are no lump sums. Should also protect against inflation. I need to keep eye on the VAT increase though. With my last 3 year plan my monthly payments went down with VAT (the 15% rate).

I was also told the plan would cover any required MOTs (if they are done at the same time as a service, otherwise they would be half-price) and if I sold the car there was the option to transfer the plan (albeit with a small admin charge - £15 I think).

The only major problem I had with my last plan was it was based on 10K/year, where I do approx. 13K/year. When it came to the last service (no. 3) I got the car booked in no problem, but the day before she was due in I had a call saying I didn't have enough credit for the service. After a fair bit of arguing and speaking to the manager they did the service in the end. Shouldn't be problem this time as I got the plan tweaked for 13K/year.

[Parts-King]

The way it works is your monthly premium goes into a pot and there will be enough in the pot when it comes to service time. If you do more than average mileage then you need to have the plan adjusted to make sure there is enough in the pot as Gav did. Changes in VAT will not significantly alter what is in the pot, unless VAT goes through the roof! Who knows these days eh?

Kingo

[MarcoPolo007uk]

My Salesman didn't even mention this to me! :(

Is this something I could sign up for now having owned my Auris for 2 months?

[Parts-King]

My Salesman didn't even mention this to me!

Is this something I could sign up for now having owned my Auris for 2 months?

Sure is MarcoPolo, speak to your local service department and they will sort it for you

Kingo

[Grumpy Cabbie]

My Salesman didn't even mention this to me! :(

Is this something I could sign up for now having owned my Auris for 2 months?

Oh your local dealer will write to you about - be sure of that!

I think I've had one letter every two months! But did finally relent and take out a plan. Also, negotiate with them

[Aimhigh]

Sorry but there are some things that they wont tell you about.

The plan freezes the service costs for the duration of the contract which saves money, but it is important to remember that you are entering into a formal finance agreement.

In effect this is a savings plan - you are paying in advance for a series of standard services (it is not a warranty, nothing other than the standard service will be included).

There is no risk to the garage or the finance company because they have your money before you reach the service point (thats why they ask your mileage and adjust the monthly payments to suit).

So its interest free? They do sell on this basis. Funny; you are paying in advance (sorry Parts King).

By the way if you are UNDER payed-up at the time of a service they MAY ask you for a top-up (happened to me to the tune of £95 - more about that later)

So what the catch?

Well, there is an admin charge levied to your account (in the region of £50) at the start of the contract. You are in effect in arrears as you make the first payments.

If you run the full course of the contract then this isn't an issue because the garage will write off the short fall, which is in effect the admin charge (after all they sold it as interest free/covers all the services etc).

But

If your circumstances change and you do more miles, then your may find (as I did) that the shortfall will include this admin fee and strangely you end up with a larger-than-you-thought bill to pay.

Secondly,

If you terminate early, say buy a new car but don't take a new plan (for example a new Toyota with 3 yrs free servicing)

Do I think its a good deal? Yes as long as you are aware of this admin charge and the way the contract works.

However apart from the service costs being frozen, there is less hassle setting up a standing order for your monthly payments into your own savings account to contribute towards your services.

Just my experience